IPCC report: Police watchdog ‘woefully under-equipped and hamstrung’

Report: The police watchdog ‘leaves the public frustrated’ (Picture: Getty)

The police watchdog is ‘woefully under-equipped and hamstrung’ in its ability in dealing with complaints made against the force, MPs have said.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) does not have the power or resources to get to the truth, a report by the Home Affairs Select Committee has found.

It said more cases should be investigated independently by the IPCC instead of being referred back to the original police force on a ‘complaints roundabout’.

The IPCC, which was established in 2004, is currently investigating the Hillsborough Disaster in the UK’s biggest ever inquiry into police misconduct.

‘When public trust in the police is tested by complaints of negligence, misconduct and corruption, a strong watchdog is vital to get to the truth – but the IPCC leaves the public frustrated and faithless,’ said committee chairman Keith Vaz.

Probe: Committee chairman Keith Vaz (Picture: Getty)

‘Nearly a quarter of officers were subject to a complaint last year. Many were trivial, but some were extremely serious, involving deaths in custody or corruption -it is an insult to all concerned to do no more than scratch the surface of these alleged abuses.

‘The IPCC investigated just a handful and often arrived at the scene late, when the trail had gone cold.’

He added: ‘The Commission is on the brink of letting grave misconduct go uninvestigated.’

The committee found a third of all complaints made against a total of 31,771 officers during 2011/2012 were not investigated properly by local police forces.

The IPCC is currently investigating the Hillsborough scandal (Picture: PA)

It said the IPCC should be given a statutory power in order to ensure its findings are fully implemented in the future.

A Home Office spokesman said: ‘Improving police professionalism and integrity are at the cornerstone of the sweeping reforms we are making to the police force, and the IPCC has a key role to play.

‘We are already working to ensure the organisation has the powers and resources it needs to manage the challenges it is currently facing and we will shortly announce a package of new measures designed to further improve the public’s trust in the police.’

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper repeated her call for a radical reform of police accountability.